In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, Student Government Association (SGA) leadership is hard at work implementing changes to keep students safe.

Student body president Derek Rockey holds an optimistic outlook even after the last semester of his senior year was unexpectedly shortened.

“I would love for the student body to know that we will continue to advocate for them on a daily basis (during this crisis),” Rockey said.

The spring is usually a busy season for SGA, with many anticipated student events. A campus prayer walk, the class ring ceremony and the end of the year banquet were just a few of the activities canceled due to COVID-19 precautions.

“The first thing that hit us was when we heard that March Madness was cancelled … then when we heard the governor’s order against groups of 10 or more, and then when Liberty transferred all classes to an online format, that’s when everything really started to unfold,” Rockey said. “At that point, we had to cancel the ring ceremony, we had to cancel the SGA banquet … everything got shut down.”

In lieu of the ceremony, ring distribution will take place through the mail – class rings will be delivered to the shipping address purchasers provided.

“We have had the people at the bookstore reach out to each student who has ordered a ring, to make sure that if their rings were being ordered and sent to Liberty University, they will now be sent to a new shipping address that they request,” Rockey said.

Students had the opportunity to purchase class rings until Feb. 7. The university’s first ring ceremony was to be held two months later on April 7.

“We are deeply saddened by the health crisis that (COVID-19) has turned into. Our hearts go out to everyone who has been intimately and personally affected,” Rockey said. “Our hearts and prayers also go out to the leaders of this country and this university who have to deal with this and make the hard decisions necessary to keep people safe.”

Kayleigh Hamer is a News Reporter for the Liberty Champion. Follow her on Twitter @kayleighhamerrr